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| 1968 Academy Awards Ceremony Santa Monica Civic |
Reimagining the Civic
SUSAN CLOKE
Columnist
We sat on uncomfortable seats in Santa Monica’s
beloved Civic Auditorium. A full
house was there for the Santa Monica Symphony Orchestra’s “A Farewell Tribute
to the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium.” The all -Tchaikovsky program included a gorgeous
performance by Antonio Lysy of
“Variations on a Rococo Theme for Cello and Orchestra.” The “1812 Overture,” written by
Tchaikovsky in 1880 to commemorate “the defense of the motherland,” concluded
the program and the significance of the piece was not lost on the
audience. When Conductor Guido
Lamell closed the evening with a promise to be back at the Civic there was
great applause.
Built in 1958 and given Landmark Designation in
2002, the Civic was known worldwide as the home of the Academy Awards. 1968 was
the last year the Academy Awards were held at the Civic. The awards ceremony was held late that
year because of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
The Civic has been the venue for artists andperformers who are part of the cultural history of the Country: Andre Previn,
Dave Brubeck, Pete Seeger, Ella Fitzgerald, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Elton John,
Ray Charles, Arlo Guthrie, the Beach Boys, the Carpenters, Bill Cosby, Jonathan
Winters, Allen Ginsberg, the Rolling Stones, James Brown, Sarah Vaughan, and
Bruce Springsteen.
Designed by Welton Becket and Associates, the
Historic Resources Technical Report cites it as “an excellent example of
International Style design as applied to an auditorium. It was also considered an engineering
marvel noted for its use of hydraulics for raising and lowering the floor for
multiple uses.”
“Functionally obsolete” was the description of
the current state of the Civic by John Altschuler, a former Santa Monica City
Manager and the Chair of an Urban Land Institute (ULI) panel discussion on the
building’s future. The ULI does
think the Civic can be saved and has ideas for how to understand the urban
design problem and how to finance the revitalization.
The panel was one of many outreach events held
since the October 7, 2012 Council meeting where staff was directed to, in
Jessica Cusick’s words, “beat the bushes to get public and expert opinion on a
vision for the future of the Civic.
The Council had two goals:
to retain the cultural use of the Civic and to identify funding in light
of the loss of Redevelopment Funds.”
Cusick is the Cultural Affairs Manager for the
City. She has been pursuing both
goals and reports that there is “significant interest in revitalizing the Civic
as a cultural venue by private sector businesses. Given the interest from both the public and the private
sector in preserving the Civic as the cultural heart of our city I am
optimistic that we will be able to put together a way to fund the future of the
Civic.”
The Civic is on the agenda for the June 11, 2013
Council meeting. Council Member
Winterer expects that will be the “beginning of discussions of public/private
partnerships.”
A week before the Council meeting there will be
a community meeting to discuss ideas for the Civic. The meeting will be held at Virginia Avenue Park, June 4, 2012,
at 7:30 pm.
The public interest has been long and well
expressed. The City has committed
to protecting and revitalizing the Civic at least since the time of the
original Civic Center Specific Plan.
The Santa Monica Conservancy, the Landmarks Commission and other
organizations have expressed support and an interest in working on good
solutions.
“Save the Santa Monica Civic,” an organization
founded in November 2012 by Landmarks Commissioner Nina Fresco and a coalition
group of well known Santa Monicans, is committed to “restoring and enhancing
the Civic’s place as a vibrant cultural and community hub, as well as saving
its landmark architecture and continuing its celebrated heritage. We will seek to develop recommendations
for a management approach that will be profitable and enable long-term
efficient operation. The coalition
will help garner public support for any viable approach.”
When the Civic Auditorium was just an idea in
the 1950’s, the Council established a Public Board to advise the Council on the
development of the Civic Auditorium. Given the broad public support for the Civic and the
high level of interest, doesn’t it make sense to create an advisory board for
today’s needs, composed of both public and private sector members and staffed
by the City Manager and Cultural Affairs Manager, for the planning part of the
revitalization of the Civic?
According to Sepp Donahower that Advisory Board
could be the precursor to a Management Board on the model of the Pier
Board. Donahower was a pioneer
concert producer who brought the Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix and Janice Joplin
to Los Angeles. He believes it can
be made to be financially self -sustaining. “The Civic will only work,” he said, “if it’s part of
something bigger – a cultural commons.
Give people a reason to go there, make it a fun thing. We could have a great public plaza and
garden with wonderful places to drink and eat and listen to good music. Build an exhibition space that could
also be used as a venue for films or a place to have weddings. Maybe follow ULI’s suggestion and add a
boutique hotel. When you put
sympathetic elements together it will create the environment for success, it
will serve the entire Civic Center and energize the neighboring hotels and Main
Street. It will be a
connecter.”
Saving the Civic also supports the City’s goals
for environmental sustainability.
Certainly, as was written on a Santa Monica Conservancy sign at the Main
Street parade, “The greenest building is the one that already exists.”
Let’s revitalize and keep the Civic. Let’s also look at the idea of creating a
Cultural District incorporating the Civic, using the adjacent parking lot as a
site for a new building, compatible in scale and character but having its own
identity, and create an art park that surrounds both buildings.
Saving the Civic is the right thing to do for so
many reasons. It’s time now for
all ideas to be on the table to help us get from where we are now to once again
having the Civic Auditorium be the cultural ambassador of the City. We honor our history, we protect our
cultural future, we enhance our international reputation, we support our
commitment to sustainability, and we support our business community. It is an exciting challenge and one I
think we’re up to.
What Say You?
